Integral Education for Social-Economic Development in Africa
By Anthony M. Wanjohi
This paper explores the
broad theme of the role of education in bringing socio-economic and
intellectual transformation in the society. The first part of the paper briefly
describes the two concepts: progressive movement of mid 19th Century
and Lonnegan’s Intellectual conversion upon
which Nyerere (most probably) drew his
inspiration about the role of education in development. The paper builds up to
suggest possible curriculum interventions that can stir Africa to a greater
social empowerment, economic prosperity, intellectual conversion and self
development.
2.0 The concept of
progressive movement of mid 19th Century
The Progressive Movement
was an effort to cure many of the ills of American society that had developed
during the great spurt of industrial growth in the last quarter of the 19th
century. The frontier had been tamed, great cities and businesses developed,
and an overseas empire established, but not all citizens shared in the new
wealth, prestige, and optimism.
The specific goals of
progressivism included:
a) The desire to remove corruption and undue
influence from government through the taming of bosses and political machines
b) The effort to include more people more directly
in the political process
c) The conviction that government must play a role
to solve social problems and establish fairness in economic matters.
These ills continue to
face our society today. In Tanzanian case, Nyerere,
the son of the land had lessons to draw from progressivism for his land.
3.0 Lonergan’s Intellectual conversion
Lonergan writes
that we all live in our world since man’s life is being in the world, but it is
far from true that we all live the world as it really is. Lonerganrefers
to Cardinal Newman and his distinction between notional assent and real assent.
Notional assent allows one to give the right answers and pass one’s exams. Real
assent changes the world you live in (Lonergan,
2010). Nyerere perhaps borrowed heavily
from this version, the world of making things real, the world of actualization.
As such, education should make things happen, curriculum
should be actualized through embracing skill based education relevant to the
changing times.
4.0 An Overview of Nyerere’s Philosophy of Education
According to Nyerere, the purpose of education in general as well as to
the purpose
of development lies
in the following excerpt:
[...] is the liberation of Man from the
restraints and limitations of ignorance and dependency. Education has to
increase men’s physical and mental freedom—to increase their control over
themselves, their own lives, and the environment in which they live. The ideas
imparted by education, or released in the mind through education, should
therefore be liberating ideas; the skills acquired by education should be
liberating skills (Nyerere, 1978, p. 27-28).
Education has also to
help people towards achieving self development in cooperation with others. The
following depicts this aspect of education:
[…] it has to help men decide for themselves, in
co-operation - what development is. It must help men to think clearly; it must
enable them to examine the possible alterative courses of action; to make a
choice between those alternatives in keeping with their own purposes; and it
must equip them with the ability to translate their decisions into reality (Nyerere, 1978, p. 28).
Nyerere’s views, are applicable in bringing about socio-economic
empowerment through community participatory approach.
5.0 Kenya’s Interventions
through 8-4-4 System
The 8-4-4 system of education was introduced in January
1985, following the Mackay report of 1982. King and McGrath (2002) observe that
the 8-4-4 policy arose out of the concerns that a basic academic education
might lack the necessary content to promote widespread sustainable (self)
employment. Therefore the 8-4-4 policy emanated from the assumption that it
would equip pupils with employable skills thereby enabling school dropouts at
all levels to be either self-employed or secure employment in the informal
sector. Amutabi (2003)observes that
the new policy would orient youths towards self-employment. The system strongly
emphasized attitudinal and skills preparations for the world of work and
especially self-employment.
The 8-4-4 system has been the subject of national debate
since its inception. It has been criticized for being broad, expensive and
burdensome to pupils and parents. The new education policy has also been
implicated in the worst strikes that engulfed a number of schools in Kenya
during the year 2001 and the general poor quality of education (Amutabi, 2003). Despite its noble provisions, the system
failed to provide real answers to the real problems that face society today.
Thus, we pose a question: what interventions should be taken to bring about
real change in real time
6.0 Possible Curriculum
Interventions for Development in Africa
The education systems
inherited from the colonial powers were designed for the formal sector and
public administration. In developing countries, however, many people work in
the informal sector, so vocational qualifications in trades or retail
marketing, for example, are often acquired in informal settings. The awareness
is growing of how little formal schooling contributes to making a living in the
informal sector (already realized with introduction of 8-4-4 system in
countries like Kenya but implementation process faulted).
Thus the following
interventions should be considered:
Curricula should be
modified to provide learners in all levels of education with better skills for
self-employment or starting a business. However, there is certainly still a
need for greater recognition of the qualifications acquired through non-formal
and informal learning. Proper implementation of such changes should be ensured
through constant monitoring and evaluation.
6.2 Skill based
Education and Training
Curriculum should be
practical oriented to equip learners with life skills.
Productive work should
become an integral part of the school curriculum and provide
meaningful learning
experience through the integration of theory and practice.
6.3 Designing and
implementing an integral curriculum
An integral curriculum
that considers all aspects of integral formation of a learner, that which
equips the learner with basic skills for life, that which is complete in
itself.
For instance, primary
school curriculum should be designed in such a manner that it is complete in
itself rather than being “transitional curriculum”; it should not serve merely
as a means to higher education but an end in itself.
Bringing about
socio-economic and intellectual conversion through curriculum intervention is a
process that calls for not only resources but possession of certain charisma
that drove our fore fathers and builders of nations like Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Kwame Nkuma of
Ghana, Nelson Mandela of South Africa, Jomo Kenyatta
of Kenya among other African statesmen. Perhaps, Nyerere’s spirit
of education for self-reliance should obsess our policy makers and all
stakeholders in all sectors of development to bring about real education change
that answers the needs of ‘Wanjikus’, (rural folks).
Amutabi,
M.N. (2003). The 8-4-4 system of education. International
Journal of
Educational
Development. 23(2003)
pp.127-144
Association
for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) (2010). Diverse forms
of learning.
Conn, W.E (1995). Transforming Light: Intellectual Conversion in the Early Lonergan.
Retrieved March 24 2011
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The Columbia Encyclopedia, (6th Edition) (2005). Progressivism
Pratt, C. (1999).
Julius Nyerere: Reflections on the
Legacy of his Socialism. Canadian
Journal of African
Studies 33 (1):
137–52. doi:10.2307/486390.
Nyerere,
J.K. (1978). Adult Education and Development. Dar es Salaam: Oxford
University
Press.
Suggested Citation in APA
Wanjohi,A.M.(2011). Integral
Education for Social-Economic Development in Africa. KENPRO Online Papers Portal. Available online at http://www.kenpro.org/papers/education-social-economic-development-africa.htm
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